Ultraviolet (“UV”) lamp systems are commonly used for heating and curing materials such as adhesives, sealants, inks, and coatings. Ultraviolet lamp systems operate by exciting an electrodeless plasma lamp with microwave energy. The electrodeless lamp is mounted within a metallic microwave cavity or chamber. One or more microwave generators, such as magnetrons, are coupled via waveguides with the interior of the microwave chamber. The magnetrons supply microwave energy to initiate and sustain a plasma from a gas mixture enclosed in the electrodeless lamp. The plasma emits a characteristic spectrum of electromagnetic radiation strongly weighted with spectral lines or photons having ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths.
Magnetrons used in the UV lamp systems are consumable items with their life determined by a number of factors, including total hours of operation, number of starts, time in a standby mode, power level, as well as other conditions. Predicting when a magnetron will fail or reach the end of its life requires knowledge of its operation history. In addition to providing a better prediction of end of life, the history can also be used to verify warranty claims, provide better information for failure analysis, and improve magnetron life by adjusting the operating parameters.